 Today is the day. It is the big reveal of my version of McCaul's 8.1.2.1 that we have been sewing together for the past week. I cannot wait to tell you all about it, but real quick, if you're new here, hi, I'm Lindsay. I sewed my own clothes and I'm so glad you found me. Be sure to introduce yourself in the comments so that I can give you a formal welcome. And for everyone watching, be sure to like this video so youtube will know that it is awesome and suggest it to other people. Videos highlighting my makes and sewing pattern reviews go up every single Monday. I have dozens for you to watch already on the channel if you want to binge. So check out the playlist in the top right corner of your screen. It opens in a new tab so you will not lose your place here in this video. All right, let's get into McCaul's 8.1.2.1. The pattern is this really adorable moto jacket. And I know a lot of us pass this one by in the catalog because of the sample version they made. I know they're trying to attract a younger demographic, but this fabric was really alienating to the rest of us. But if you look at the line drawings, you will see that there are some really great details in this jacket. And all things considered, it's a pretty classic design. That's why I'll always show you guys the line drawings and not the sample makes when we vote for our sew along patterns. It is so much easier to see the actual design when you're not distracted by the fabric and the styling and the location. And all of that. The website describes this jacket as a biker style jacket with welt pockets and back shoulder flange. Which is accurate, but only scratches the surface of what this jacket has to offer. In addition to those details, it also has a rolled collar, front and back yoke, asymmetrical zipper, bottom bands and sleeve zipper detail. Sewing this was quite the experience. You guys really know how to pick them. But ultimately, I'm glad you guys chose it for the sew along because there were so many challenging steps. I hope the sew along was able to help you get through them easily and that you love your jacket as much as I love mine. For my jacket, I used a brushed cotton from Joanne. I fell in love with the plaid more than anything. Thinking that the preppy vibe of the fabric juxtaposed with the hard edge detailing of the biker jacket would be a fun pairing. I don't think that biker jackets all have to be some kind of specialty fabric like leather or pleather or suede. I think you can have a lot of fun making them out of, you know, more traditional fabrics like denim and corduroy. Aside from the print, the fabric was really easy to work with. The edges did fray with the slightest bit of handling, especially on bias curves. But I was able to manage it just fine in spite of that. It held up really well to pressing and did not require any special handling or notions. I used a size 80 universal needle throughout. For the lining, I used Joanne's posh lining. It's 100% polyester, but a little more structured than some of the other stuff that they sell. I like it a lot for jackets and coats. I did have to switch to a size 70 universal needle when sewing the lining and probably could have even gone to a size 70 microtex needle. Zippers were just standard polyester zips with plastic teeth, nothing special. I considered metal zippers, but in the end decided that they would be too heavy weight for the fabric. For interfacing, I used ThermoWeb's mid-weight woven. It is a literal dream to work with and I have never had issues with the like outer fabric bubbling or the glue coming undone when I use it. It does not require steam to adhere to the fabric, which prevents a lot of those problems. And it also prevents the interfacing from shrinking up on me during application. If you've never tried ThermoWeb's interfacing before, I've linked it in the description box. It's easier to buy it online from them than it is to find the right stuff in the store. But I think you will love it and maybe never go back to the other stuff. Fitting wise, I didn't make a ton of alterations, but I did shorten it by about two inches all the way around. The way the jacket is drafted, the top of the bottom band would hit at your natural waist. I knew I wanted a crop jacket and this one was going to hit at my high hip, so I took up all the pattern pieces, including the lining to achieve this length. I also shaved off about a quarter of an inch from the shoulder seam at the sleeve side. To reduce some of the ease in the arm side and get kind of a better fit through there. You can learn more about my thought process in fitting this jacket in episode zero of the Sew Along. I've linked it in the top right corner here. So as I was sewing this with you guys, I did uncover some questionable construction choices. The most notable were the neckline stay stitching and also the lack of interfacing in critical areas. So we were not instructed to stay stitch the neckline until we were actually sewing the collar. This means we were handling the neckline through the entire front and back construction before doing anything to prevent those seam lines from stretching out. In the future, I'm going to stay stitch my neckline immediately right after the interfacing goes on before I even sew anything on the jacket. And there were a few areas that were not interfaced that I think should be the bands and the lower sleeves. There are zippers in each of those pieces and I think some interfacing would have gone a long way to reinforcing those seams and preventing any waves or bunching. You can kind of see my hems are just the slightest bit wavy. Obviously, that's also due to the kind of fabric that I use, but a little bit of interfacing there would have really helped no matter what fabric you used. I am not 100% sure if there is another version of this jacket in my future, especially my immediate future, mostly because it was just so much work. But that said, if I do decide that I need another moto jacket, this will be the only pattern I need. It's classic, well constructed and it came together perfectly. I just need to work up the motivation for all the focus that it takes to sew this again. And then maybe. So time heals all wounds. So maybe in a few months or a year or so I will be jonesing for another moto jacket and this will be the one I use. Before I go, I want to take a quick second to thank everyone who sewed along with me this week. These types of videos and series are so much work on my end, but it makes it so worth it when reading your comments and answering your questions. I've seen a lot of progress photos with some gorgeous fabrics and I cannot wait to see how they all come together. Continue to tag me and make your way through your workbook, I cannot wait to see your jackets. I've got a ton of links in the description box, including the pattern and all the supplies I used. I've also linked to my most recent pattern review for the petite stichery rimmy sweater here in the insulate. So if you have not seen that video yet, click on the bottom right of your screen and it will take you right there. But that is going to do it for me today. Thank you so much for watching. I will see you all very soon. Bye.